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From Bill Belichick to Miller Moss: 10 moves that shaped the ACC football offseason
The Atlantic Coast Conference is finally at peace.
The league and two of its most prominent members, Clemson and Florida State, have finally resolved their legal battles. Barring any surprising developments, the conference will look the same until the next major wave of media rights deals begins (around 2030).
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That's comforting news for ACC fans, who saw two teams from the league (Clemson and SMU) earn a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff in 2024. How many ACC teams will make the next one? That's anyone's guess.
Here's a look at 10 offseason moves that could help determine what happens this fall.
Dabo Swinney was the most decorated coach in the ACC until North Carolina hired the six-time Super Bowl winner to replace Mack Brown, who was let go after a 6-7 season.
Although most of the attention Belichick has received early on at UNC has revolved around his 24-year-old girlfriend, the Tar Heels have been busy flipping the roster with close to 40 transfer additions and more than 50 departures. It will be fascinating to see what Belichick and his staff can do with a roster that lacks top-end talent. UNC's over/under for wins is 7.5 according to BetMGM.
The Tigers made the College Football Playoff in 2024, but changes still needed to be made. They gave up 292 yards rushing in the CFP loss to Texas and, for the season, ranked 16th in the ACC in rushing defense (160.6 ypg). Swinney fired defensive coordinator Wes Goodwin in January and hired Allen away from Penn State a week later.
Clemson DC Tom Allen gets choked up talking about the sacrifices his wife and kids had to make as he pursued his coaching career. 'We're really close.' Says pulling his kids out of school was taxing on everyone. 'One time my daughter just wouldn't get out of the car'
— Chapel Fowler (@chapelfowler) January 15, 2025
Allen said he left State College in part to be closer to his two daughters in the Carolinas, but the $400,000 salary bump surely didn't hurt.
Penn State ranked in the top 10 in scoring defense, total defense and rushing defense in 2024. Allen has plenty of quality talent to work with at Clemson, including three returning starters in the secondary, two of the team's top three leading tacklers at linebacker and three players on the defensive line who started at least 10 games last season.
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It's been another good offseason for Mario Cristobal. The Hurricanes landed their replacement for Cam Ward at quarterback in Carson Beck from Georgia. They also upgraded the secondary, most notably with the arrival of cornerback Xavier Lucas (Wisconsin) and safety Zechariah Poyser (Jacksonville State). These additions will aid new defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman (Minnesota) in his quest to get the Canes right on that side of the ball.
Malzahn made the unorthodox move of leaving a job as a Power 4 head coach to become an offensive coordinator at another P4 school in the same state, one that went 2-10 in 2024 after going 13-1 the previous season. But Malzahn, who turns 60 in October, decided he just wanted to get back to coaching offense after completing his fourth season in Orlando with a 4-8 record.
The Seminoles could use all the help they can get on offense after ranking 131st in scoring (15.3 ppg) and 132nd in yards per play (4.4) in 2024. Boston College quarterback transfer Thomas Castellanos, originally a UCF signee for Malzahn, will try to lead the turnaround. Veteran receivers Duce Robinson (USC) and Squirrel White (Tennessee) are among 23 transfers in Mike Norvell's portal class.
Maalik Murphy threw for 2,933 yards and set a school record with 26 touchdown passes, but he entered the transfer portal following the regular season. The Blue Devils pivoted to Mensah, who signed an NIL deal worth $4 million per season, according to CBS. Mensah, who ranked No. 3 in The Athletic's winter portal QB rankings, started 13 games at Tulane last season and threw for 2,723 yards with 22 touchdowns and six interceptions.
.@EJManuel3 breaks down the impact QB Darian Mensah will have on @DukeFOOTBALL 😈🏈
— ACC Network (@accnetwork) May 3, 2025
Duke lost the left side of its offensive line and its top two receivers to graduation and leading rusher Star Thomas (Tennessee) to the transfer portal. But coach Manny Diaz picked up a couple of former quality FCS starters in receiver Cooper Barkate (Harvard) and offensive guard Jordan Larsen (South Dakota) to fortify the roster.
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Some people may have forgotten, but Stanford was a nationally relevant program not long ago. Luck helped start that run, quarterbacking Stanford to final rankings of No. 4 and No. 7 in 2010 and 2011, respectively, before becoming the No. 1 pick in the 2012 draft. Now, the 35-year-old is back in Palo Alto as Stanford's general manager, hoping to breathe life back into a program that has won only three games in four consecutive seasons. Luck hired his old coach with the Colts, Frank Reich, in March to serve as an interim head coach following Troy Taylor's firing.
Reich won't have to worry about NIL and roster building. Luck is handling all of that. He has his hands full. Stanford lost 27 players to the portal, including veteran edge rusher David Bailey (Texas Tech) and talented young receiver Emmett Mosley V (Texas) this spring. Stanford reeled in seven transfers who started at least eight games in 2024, but only one — offensive lineman Niki Prongos (UCLA) — played at the FBS level last season.
The Bears' ACC debut included early-season losses to Florida State, Miami, Pitt and NC State by a combined nine points. The offseason has been just as painful.
Not only did quarterback Fernando Mendoza leave for Indiana, but the Bears lost five of their top six receivers — including tight end Jack Endries (Texas) and standout freshman Nyziah Hunter (Nebraska) — and their top four running backs. Jaydn Ott's departure to Oklahoma garnered the most headlines, but Jaivian Thomas (UCLA) was actually Cal's leading rusher in 2024.
O-T-T-T-O-G-OWe've got Jaydn Ott to go!#Calgorithm #FightForCalGameday #H1M #WhyNotCal
— Callie Wake (@wokemobfootball) September 28, 2024
New offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin, the former Auburn and Boise State head coach, will need to incorporate a bunch of post-spring arrivals into his system during preseason camp.
Sometimes, the hardest thing to do is hold onto your own players. Georgia Tech lost arguably its most explosive receiver to the portal in Eric Singleton Jr. (Auburn) and appeared to be on the verge of losing its leader in receptions in Malik Rutherford. But after two days of exploring his options, Rutherford (62 catches, 702 yards) decided to return for his senior season.
Before Rutherford decided to come back, the Yellow Jackets managed to nab one of the best available receivers in the portal in Eric Rivers, who hauled in 62 passes for 1,172 yards and 12 touchdowns last season at FIU. With Haynes King back at quarterback and Jamal Haynes returning in the backfield, Georgia Tech has a chance to contend in the ACC. It navigated some rough waters and found quality replacements for key players.
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It was only four years ago that Dave Clawson had the Demon Deacons playing for the ACC championship. Dickert, 41, is attempting to turn Wake (4-8 each of the last two seasons) around by overhauling the roster, with a heavy dose of his former players at Washington State and transfers from the FCS ranks.
Dickert has signed 35 transfers since taking over, including 18 who started at least six games last season. Among the additions are nine former Cougars, headlined by right tackle Fa'alili Fa'amoe.
Tyler Shough made the most of his one-and-done opportunity under Jeff Brohm last season, finishing 14th nationally in passing yards per game (266.3) before becoming the third quarterback taken in the 2025 NFL Draft (No. 40 by New Orleans).
Moss, a fifth-year senior, started nine games at USC last season after waiting his turn behind No. 1 pick Caleb Williams. He has half the career starts (10) Shough had when he arrived at Louisville last year. But Brohm has done a phenomenal job with veteran quarterbacks in recent years, first with Jack Plummer — a third-team All-ACC pick in 2023 — and then Shough last season.
(Photo of Miller Moss: Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
